Venetian blind assemblies are typically mounted to the surface of ceilings or walls by means of a headrail. The connection between the headrail and the ceiling or wall surface is conventionally by way of headrail installation brackets which may take a variety of forms.
Prior art forms of support brackets for a venetian blind assembly are connected over the ends of the venetian blind headrail. Thus, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,580,753 and 4,607,677 disclose support brackets having open-sided box structures with pivoting front members. In use, these box-brackets are readily observable and detract from the appearance of the venetian blind installation. Moreover, the bracket must be manufactured in a variety of colors to match the headrail, therefore necessitating increased manufacturing and inventory costs. Further, different shadings may exist between one lot of a color and another, which causes a mismatch between the brackets and the venetian blind headrail, thereby rendering the venetian blind installation less attractive.
Another form of prior art venetian blind headrail installation bracket is shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,601,319 and 4,662,596 which also utilize end-supportive means. In this form of bracket, end members are inserted into opposing ends of the headrail and subsequently attached either directly or by a second bracket to a wall, ceiling or other supporting structure. As above, these end-supportive brackets will be visible after installation, and therefore raise the same kinds of objections.
Many conventional end-supportive brackets further must be manufactured to close tolerances in order to assure a tight, secure fit between the headrail and the bracket. In addition, both right-hand and left-hand brackets are often required. These circumstances necessarily increase the cost of tooling, manufacturing, and inventorying of the brackets
A still further type of prior art bracket supports a headrail from points inward of the ends thereof. These brackets are used in conjunction with a generally U-shaped headrail having the longitudinally extending upper edges turned inwardly in order to form a support edge. Brackets of this type are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,438,897, 4,475,706 and 4,607,818.
Despite the existence of the aforementioned brackets, there is a need for improved support brackets for securely supporting a venetian blind headrail, so shaped and formed that in assembled position they do not detract from the appearance of the venetian blind installation, and which allow for the easy removal of the venetian blind headrail therefrom without the requirement of a tool.
The present invention discloses a bracket assembly that attempts to address these problems of the prior art devices by providing a relatively simple structure that is less costly to manufacture, and easier to install. In the improved bracket assembly in accordance with the present invention, a rigid outer support is adapted to be fastened to a support surface. The outer support houses a resilient inner support which includes hook members to engage and support the inwardly turned support edges of a venetian blind headrail. A friction member on the outer support is disposed in operative position to engage the rounded portion of the venetian blind headrail support edge in order to prevent lateral movement of the headrail with respect to the bracket assembly.